The Council and the European Parliament have this week reached an agreement on the EU budget for 2023 that places particular emphasis on the EU’s main strategic priorities. Total commitments are set at €186.6 billion. This is an increase of 1.1% compared to the 2022 budget as amended. €0.4 billion have been kept available under […]
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Autumn 2022 Economic Forecast: The EU economy at a turning point
After a strong first half of the year, the EU economy has now entered a much more challenging phase. The shocks unleashed by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine are denting global demand and reinforcing global inflationary pressures. The EU is among the most exposed advanced economies, due to its geographical proximity to the war […]
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European Council agrees 9.5 million euro aid for Spain following the volcano on La Palma
The Council decided to amend its yearly budget to provide €668 million in disaster relief aid to Germany, Belgium, Spain, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Greece and Austria. The money will be used to repair damage inflicted by the major natural disasters that hit these seven member states in 2021. In practice this means that the […]
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Eurogroup – Main results: Ministers discussed economic developments in the euro area – 7 November 2022
Economic developments in and outlook for the euro area The Eurogroup exchanged views on the latest economic developments in and the outlook for the euro area, following presentations by the European Commission and the European Central Bank (ECB). Fiscal policy in the euro area: update on draft budgetary plans Following a presentation by the […]
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Borrell to visit Uruguay and Argentina and co-chair CELAC-EU Ministerial
High Representative/Vice President Josep Borrell will travel to Latin America, the third time of his current mandate, starting in Uruguay on 24 October and continuing to Argentina from 25 October. His mission aims to further strengthen both bilateral and regional relations, in particular through co-chairing the EU-CELAC Foreign Ministers Meeting which will pave the way for further high-level […]
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Eurobarometer survey highlights how Europeans interact with the financial services world
The European Commission has today published a Eurobarometer survey on how Europeans interact with the financial services world, in particular given its ever-increasing digitalisation and the development of sustainable finance. Overall, 86% of Europeans say that they feel confident in managing their personal finances, and 73% feel confident with banking online. However, the results vary […]
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Cryptocurrency dangers and the benefits of EU legislation
Why and how should the EU build crypto-regulation to foster innovation and protect users? The use of crypto-assets and the technology behind them has proven to be both immensely promising and problematic. The EU wants to help boost the development of these technologies and their use in the EU, while protecting users. Risks of crypto-assets […]
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Commission adopts a more flexible antitrust Informal Guidance Notice; withdraws Antitrust COVID Temporary Framework
The European Commission has adopted a revised Informal Guidance Notice that allows businesses to seek informal guidance on the application of EU competition rules to novel or unresolved questions. The revised Informal Guidance Notice provides for more flexible conditions and aims at increasing legal certainty, to the benefit of businesses seeking the guidance when assessing the […]
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Main Results: Eurogroup, 3 October 2022
Main results Macroeconomic situation in the euro area Following up on discussions at the Eurogroup meeting in Prague, the Eurogroup discussed the macroeconomic situation in the euro area and in particular the fiscal policy response to high energy prices and inflationary pressures. Mathias Cormann, Secretary-General of the OECD, joined the discussion. We agreed today, […]
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